SEPTA receives roughly $51 million in temporary budget deal. It was expecting $161 million.

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SEPTA will receive less than 1/3 of anticipated state funding after lawmakers postponed permanent solutions to fund 32 transit agencies serving Pennsylvanians Thursday night.

Of the $80.5 million dedicated to public transportation, SEPTA got roughly $51 million compared to the expected $161 million originally proposed by Gov. Josh Shapiro in February. The $51 million in funding is a one-time payment and a temporary solution to the transit authority’s funding woes. SEPTA faces a $240 million annual deficit as federal COVID-19 relief runs out.

The governor had proposed spending an additional $283 million on public transit, a 1.75% increase in the state’s share of funding, by increasing the amount of state sales tax revenue allocated toward transportation agencies throughout the state. SEPTA would’ve received $161 million of those funds.

It is unclear why legislators decided to leave out the proposed 1.75% increase to transit funding.

“Hear me on this: that is just a start,” Gov. Josh Shapiro said before signing the budget. “Myself, leader [Matt] Bradford, Sen. [Joe] Pittman, we are all committed to returning in the fall and finding a permanent solution for mass transit.”

SEPTA spokesperson Andrew Busch said he doesn’t know when the money will run out, but he expects the approved funds to support the transit authority through the fall, when budget discussions resume. SEPTA plans to have representatives in Harrisburg when that time comes.

“We want to know exactly what they need from us so that we can get right into this in the fall and have a productive dialogue and hopefully have a good path to getting this passed,” Busch said. “We have to continue to express the need and the urgency for this.”

In the meantime, Busch said SEPTA will dip into a service stabilization fund when needed. The operating budget approved late last month had outlined a plan to take $76 million from that fund over the fiscal year in addition to the proposed $161 million. Philadelphia’s collar counties are expected to contribute about a quarter million.

Officials said if the shortfalls continue, SEPTA would have to turn to other methods to balance the budget.

“If by some chance we can’t reach an agreement on this or this doesn’t come into place, we do have to be ready with a plan,” Busch said.

SEPTA’s budget states that its “process for implementing service cuts and fare increases will be set into motion immediately” if lawmakers fail to approve the assistance it needs.

These processes are lengthy and include public hearings and feedback.

Transit advocates have expressed disappointment with the funding shortfall and the uncertainty. SEPTA’s Youth Advisory Council, an outreach group to riders aged 14 to 22, posted a statement to X, formerly Twitter, to say it was “saddened” by the news.

“SEPTA operations are crucial to student success across South Eastern Pennsylvania and this failure brings with it significant uncertainty for our region,” the post stated.

The rider and worker coalition Transit for All PA! released a statement stating that the “funding still would not give transit the opportunity for growth that riders need.”

In his remarks Thursday, Shapiro said 1 million Pennsylvanians ride public transportation everyday. May saw a daily average of 717,630 SEPTA riders.